CINCINNATI — Jacob Hurtubise is the second-fastest man on the Cincinnati Reds. The rookie outfielder was at first in the sixth inning of Wednesday’s 7-3 loss to the San Diego Padres when teammate Jeimer Candelario hit a single to right field.
Hurtubise didn’t even pretend he was going to go to third on the play — Fernando Tatis Jr. was in right field. Collin Cowgill, the Reds first base coach, said he doesn’t even really have to go over Tatis’ arm in the scouting reports, everyone knows you just don’t run on Tatis.
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That is unless, of course, you’re Elly De La Cruz.
In Tuesday’s win over the Padres, De La Cruz hit a chopper that skipped off the glove of first baseman Jake Cronenworth and into right field, scoring a run. Cowgill and Reds third base coach J.R. House both said with any other Reds player, they’d want the runner to take a hard turn around first, then go back to the bag and celebrate the RBI. That was not on De La Cruz’s mind.
“I was thinking what I always think — next base,” De La Cruz said. “It doesn’t matter who is playing, I’m not going to change my game.”
De La Cruz flew by Cowgill at first and then slid into second headfirst ahead of a perfect throw by Tatis, who could do nothing by smile after the play.
Elly De La Cruz vs. Fernando Tatis Jr.
This is going to be a fun series 🤣 pic.twitter.com/VSYBBUKgjX
— MLB (@MLB) May 21, 2024
Wednesday afternoon, Tatis was asked how many players he thought would attempt to go to second, much less make it to second.
“Probably just Elly,” Tatis chuckled.
When that story was relayed to Cowgill, he just agreed with the Padres superstar.
“That’s right,” Cowgill said. “That’s usually the answer for most things on this field. When something wows you, like, he’s the only one.”
Tatis is one of the best players in the game. He was once a shortstop, but then the Padres moved him to right field and immediately, Cowgill said, he became the best defensive right fielder in the game.
In his first full season as an outfielder in 2023, Tatis not only won the National League Gold Glove for right fielders, he was also awarded the Platinum Glove for the best overall defensive player in the league. After that, Cowgill went to the tape and watched every play he made during the year.
Cowgill checked Tuesday’s play and marveled at Tatis’ positioning, route to the ball and throw to second. Not only did Tatis do everything right, but he did it about as well as you can do it.
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“To make that throw against that guy, sidearm on the money … that gets 99 out of 100 people every time,” Cowgill said. “He’s an absolute weapon out there.”
Padres manager Mike Shildt said he’s seen a few runners try to make it to second on balls like that against Tatis, but they usually have something in common.
“I’ve seen people try and go back to the dugout,” he said.
While Tatis didn’t mention it, among those who have been sent back to the dugout attempting to run on Tatis has been De La Cruz. Last season in De La Cruz’s first game against Tatis, he hit a chopper over the first baseman and tried to turn a single into a double. Tatis threw him out easily.
That particular fact wasn’t brought up by Tatis, but instead by De La Cruz.
“He got me out last year on that play — and this year I beat him,” De La Cruz said.
this is going to be a double for elly de la cruz most of the time but that's fernando tatís jr. in right field so not this time pic.twitter.com/8gUCt43MFG
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) June 30, 2023
Because of his position and size, De La Cruz was compared to Tatis before he even left the Reds’ complex in Arizona for the lowest rungs of the minor leagues. Both were shortstops and both natives of the Dominican Republic. Tatis is 6-foot-3 and De La Cruz 6-foot-5. And then there’s just the overwhelming talent of both. Both can hit the ball hard and run fast and their arms are weapons. They also both play with the style and smarts that show their love and knowledge of the game.
“I’m not a big comparison person, I think everyone needs their own identity and I don’t want to put a ceiling or a limit on anybody, but it’s pretty obvious, right?” Shildt said. “You’re talking about two must-watch guys. Even myself with Fernando and admiringly with De La Cruz, you just watch and want to appreciate what that athlete does on a baseball field because it really is impressive.”
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Tatis has watched De La Cruz and has been impressed like everyone else.
“I feel like he has better tools than myself, the speed and power,” Tatis said. “It’s just a matter of bringing it together and showing it on a daily basis, which he’s done consistently this year and it’s really fun to watch.”
Later, he went one step further, praising the Reds’ second-year shortstop by noting he enjoyed “seeing a guy in front of you doing the same things or maybe even better.”
While De La Cruz has shown that he’s clearly a player to watch in Major League Baseball, Tatis has a longer track record and it seems premature to say De La Cruz is doing things better than Tatis.
“I am really good, but I believe Elly’s shown a little bit more skills and is the whole package,” Tatis said. “The beautiful part of this game is how consistent we can be. That’s the separator for each player, but I feel like he’s going to have it and he’s going to prove how good his talent and skill set is. He’s a game-changer, he can impact the game in every single area.”
Tatis said he doesn’t really know De La Cruz much off the field, but count him among De La Cruz’s many fans.
“That guy is as fast as you can imagine and he just plays baseball the right way,” Tatis said. “It’s great to be on the same field with him.”
— The Athletic’s Britt Ghiroli contributed to this report.
(Photo of Elly De La Cruz and Fernando Tatis in April: Orlando Ramirez / USA Today)